A mascot trade? Now that’s fascinating. Some further research on my part uncovered this press release, which reads in part:

“Webbly’s existing contract with the AquaSox was set to expire at the end of the 2008 season. The 12-year veteran frog made it known through his agent that he hoped to restructure and extend his agreement in order to avoid a potential holdout.”

Unfortunately, the two sides could not come to an agreement, and the AquaSox decided the best thing to do would be to trade Webbly now, rather than risk losing him to free agency at the end of the 2008 season and receiving nothing in return.

So, Webly’s days with the AquaSox have come to an end. His replacement, Dusty the Dust Devil, had spent the previous seven seasons in Tri-City. In Everett, Dusty will platoon with Frank (an anthropomorphic frankfurter) and Popfly (a puppet).

“I am positive that Dusty will be a positive addition to our staff and I believe that a Dust Devil, a Hot Dog, and a Puppet can coexist on the same team,” said AquaSox GM Brian Sloan.

Rest assured, I will be following this riveting mascot trade story as it progresses. —————————————————————————— Also, please be assured that I will be spending as much time as possible throughout the week on this here blog. Without any warning, MLBlogs has undergone a thorough overhaul., and there is much to learn. Please email me (milbbusiness@yahoo.com) if you run into any problems with the new and “improved” Ben’s Biz Blog.

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